EcoCheetah - 2B Rain Forest Deforestation

Amazon Rainforest

Rainforest Threats
Rainforests used to cover 14% of the worlds surface now they cover 6%. Experts estimate that the rest of the forest will be consumed in 40 years or less. 1½ of a rainforest is destroyed every second. About ½ of the world’s species of plants, animals, and microorganisms will be destroyed over the next century because of the rainforest being destroyed. 50,000 species a year are being lost because of people destroying the rainforest. Most rainforests are cleared by chainsaws, bulldozers, and fires for its timber value and then are followed by farming and ranching operations. There were an estimated ten million Indians living in the Amazonian Rainforest five centuries ago. Today there are less than 200,000.

Tropical Rainforests

They are the richest of all the world's biomes. Although these forests cover only about six percent of the earth's surface, they contain more than half of all living species of plants and animals, including hundreds of species of trees and thousands of species of insects.

Tropical rainforests comprise only 40% of the world's tropical forests and only 20% of the world's total forests. They cover 6-7% of the Earth's land surface. Half of the world's plant and animal species live in the tropical rainforests of the world. Thirty acres of trees are cut in the tropical rainforests every minute.

Tropical rainforests are found closer to the equator. The Tropical Rainforest is much endangered.

There are different parts or levels of the tropical rainforest:

Understory
Getting only 2-15% of light that falls on the canopy, the understory is a very dark place. It is usually open and contains young trees and leafy herbaceous plants that handle low light. Many popular house plants come from this layer. Only along rivers and roadways and in tree fall and cut area is light proficient enough to allow growth to become thick and impenetrable.

Canopy Layer
The canopy is home to 90% of the animals and plants found in the rainforest; many looking for the brighter light in the treetops.

Forest Floor
The forest floor receives less than 2% of the light and seeming as, little grows here except plants that have adapted to very low light. On the floor is a thin pile of fallen leaves, seeds, fruits, and branches that very quickly decompose. Only a thin layer of decaying organic matter is found.

Precipitation and Climate
But Tropical rainforests are very lush and wet. Rainfall falls regularly throughout the year. The tropical rainforest receives 80-400 inches of rainfall per year. And even more moisture comes from the coastal fog that hovers among the trees.

Lie’s between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.
Receive rainfall regularly throughout the year (80-400 inches per year).
Remain warm and frost free all year long (mean temperatures are between 70° and 85°F) with very little daily fluctuation.
Temperatures: Tropical is warm
Number of tree Species: Tropical has many as in hundreds.
Types of leaves: In the Tropical there are Broadleaf.
Age of trees: Tropical is 50 – 100 years.
Epiphytes: Tropical: lots of different kinds including orchirds and bromeliads.
Decomposition Rate: in the tropical there are rapid decomposition rates.

Tropical rainforests comprise only 40% of the world's tropical forests and only 20% of the world's total forests. They cover 6-7% of the Earth's land. Half of the world's plant and animal species live in the tropical rainforests of the world. Thirty acres of trees are cut in the tropical rainforests every minute.

Tropical rainforests are found closer to the equator. The Tropical rainforest in endangered.

Tropical rainforests are located near the equator. Fifty seven percent of all tropical rainforests are found in Latin America. One third of the world's tropical rainforests are in Brazil. Other tropical rainforests are located in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands (25% of the world's tropical rainforests) and West Africa (18%).

Soil and Nutrient Recycling
Most tropical rainforest soils usually poor in nutrients. Millions of years of weathering and torrential rains have washed most of the nutrients out of the soil. More recent volcanic soils, however, can be very fertile. Tropical rain forest soils contain less organic matter than temperate forests and most of the available nutrients are found in the living plant and animal material. Nutrients in the soil are often in forms that are not accessible by plants.
Constant warmth and moisture promote rapid decay of organic matter. When a tree dies in the rainforest, living animals quickly absorb the nutrients before they have a chance to be washed away. When tropical forests are cut and burned, heavy rains can quickly wash the released nutrients away, leaving the soil even more impoverished.

Major Nutrients
Tropical rainforest Temperate Deciduous forest
52% in vegetation 31% in vegetation
48% in soil 69% in soil

What Makes the Tropical Rainforest Special?

The rainforests are home to half of the Earth's plant and animal’s.
They are winter homes to many birds that breed in temperate latitudes.
Tropical rainforests are some of the most beautiful wilderness places on our planet.
They are home to tribal cultures that have survived successfully in the forests for many thousands of years.
The forests are a potential source of medicinal plants that may benefit everyone on Earth.
The ecosystem of the rainforest is based on the most complex interdependence of plants and animals. This is both the forest's strength and its weakness: highly specialized organisms are particularly vulnerable to disturbance, because they cannot adapt fast enough to survive the change.
Tropical rainforests help maintain global rain and weather patterns. Much of the water that evaporates from the trees returns in the form of rainfall. Removal of the forest can change the natural rainfall patterns.

What Makes the Tropical Rainforest Special?

The rainforests are home to half of the Earth's plant and animal species.
They are winter homes to many birds that breed in temperate latitudes.
Tropical rainforests are some of the most beautiful wildernesses on our planet.
They are home to tribal cultures that have survived successfully in the forests for many thousands of years.
The forests are a potential source of medicinal plants that may benefit everyone on Earth.
The ecosystem of the rainforest is based on the most complex interdependence of plants and animals. This is both the forest's strength and its weakness: highly specialized organisms are particularly vulnerable to disturbance, because they cannot adapt fast enough to survive the change.
Tropical rainforests help maintain global rain and weather patterns. Much of the water that evaporates from the trees returns in the form of rainfall. Removal of the forest can change the natural rainfall patterns.Although these forests cover only about six percent of the earth's surface, they contain more than half of all living species of plants and animals, including hundreds of species of trees and thousands of species of insects. Some of the most important medicines come from the Amazon rainforest.